I (Jonny) remember I laughed when I first heard someone say it. It couldn't possibly be true. How in the world could a place exist with such archaic rules? It seemed... strange.

"Jonny, when you move to Orange City, you can't mow your lawn on Sunday."

Yes, that's right, in our little corner of Northwest Iowa, there is an unwritten rule against mowing your lawn (or washing your car or working outside) on Sunday. It's the SABBATH after all! Do you want to be a social pariah? I didn't think so. If you want to work on Sunday, you better work inside!

On today's podcast, David Housholder joins us to talk about the importance of sabbath in his life, among many other things. David offers up some helpful advice for pastors who need to find some rhythm in their lives.

For more conversations about rhythm, head back a few episodes andlisten to our talk with Ken Shigematsu and consider buying his book and beginning your own "rule of life." On today's podcast, we talk about the upcoming season of Lent as a time to create some new patterns and practices and to remember to find your rest as a pastor.

David's Books on Amazon
What David's doing
David Housholder on Twitter
David Housholder on Instagram
David Housholder on Facebook
Robinwood Church - where Dave's the pastor!

We hope you've been encouraged and we always love to hear from you! If the podcast has been helpful to you, please pass it on! We've never spent a dime on advertising or promotion. We've also never made a dime off the podcast. Everything at 200churches.com is FREE. If you could share the podcast with pastors you know, we'd be much obliged! 

Ronnie Brown is the pastor of Bethany Baptist Church and the creator of The Forgotten Podcast. And... he is our guest on episode 213!

Ronnie shares with Jeff and Jonny the wows and woes of small church and bivocational pastoral ministry. Many of you will identify with Ronnie and his ministry, and Ronnie will encourage you to walk proud in whatever church context you find yourself in.

Pastor Ronnie Brown is a listener to the 200churches Podcast. At some point in the recent past, Ronnie and Jeff got on the phone and talked about Bethany Baptist and Ronnie's ministry there. Jeff knew that Ronnie would be a great encourager to all of us small church pastors, and they booked the date to record - and episode 213 is the final cut!

We know that you will enjoy this episode, and please do - because it was created just for you - our small church pastor friends!

​Thanks Ronnie Brown!

Greg Atkinson makes his second appearance on the 200churches Podcast in this episode. Greg was so kind to help us out in the early days, on episode 25 when he talked to us about how to turn around a messy church.
 
Greg is a great guy with a huge heart for ministry and people. He and his wife have three kids and are right in the swirl of a busy family life just like so many of us are. Greg has written a book to help smaller churches evaluate themselves in the area of first impressions.
 
Studies have shown that guests decide whether or not they will return to a church after just the first ten minutes of their first visit – long before you as a pastor ever stand up to preach!
 
It’s true – you only get one chance to make a great first impression – and Greg has written an ultimately practical book to help you do just that!
 
Here are links to Greg’s online presence, his first episode on our podcast, and where you can buy the book:
 
Greg’s Twitter            
Greg’s website           
Episode 23 with Greg - How To Turn Around A Messy Church
Greg’s book – Secrets of a Secret Shopper!

Check out the official website of the book here - lot's of great stuff about Greg and his book!

Episode 211 is all about Shea Zellweger and his vision for his two congregations in New England! Shea is a pastor of two churches in Connecticut, one in Waterbury and the other in Bethany. Shea made some comments on Facebook about 200churches, Jeff saw them, read the sass in between the lines, and invited him on the podcast!

You will truly enjoy Shea's perspective on ministry, vision vs. programs, missional outreach, and so much more.